In 2014, the report said, cannabis might be a $3 billion industry, and optimistic estimates peg its potential value in the United States at $46 billion, given universal legalization. However, despite the burgeoning interest, federal laws still present a major obstacle to big-money involvement with marijuana, especially because banks and credit card companies are wary of touching the industry, the report said.

Mark Calvey of the San Francisco Business Times explained how both major players like Visa (NYSE: V) and more minor transaction processors, like Square, are taking a particularly cautious path and refusing to be involved with the industry, even in Colorado and Washington state.

It’s a tough problem for people who want to invest in marijuana ventures, and one that, likely, can only be solved by changing federal laws. Some interests are trying to work around the banking and credit issue, but Capital New York’s report describes a movement that’s treading water until the full power of the American financial industry can get behind it.